This annual report - Taranaki District Health Board

Stream Indicator New Zealand Distribution and Trends Midland DHBs Distribution and TrendsEducation:Knowledgeand SkillsStand-Downs,Suspensions,Exclusions andExpulsionsTruancy andUnjustifiedAbsencesDuring 2000–2011, suspensions gradually declined,while stand-downs increased, reached a peak in 2006and then declined. Exclusion and expulsion rates weremore static. Throughout this period, the number of standdownsexceeded the number of suspensions, which inturn exceeded the number of exclusions and expulsions.During 2000–2011, stand-downs and suspensions werehigher for Māori > Pacific > European > Asian students.Stand-downs for Māori, Pacific and European studentsdeclined after 2006, with the largest declines being seenfor Māori and Pacific students. Suspension rates alsodeclined for all ethnic groups during 2000–2011, with thelargest declines again being seen for Māori students.During 2000–2011, exclusions were higher for Māori >Pacific > European > Asian students, while expulsionswere generally higher for Pacific > Māori > European andAsian students. Exclusions declined for Māori and Pacificstudents, although exclusion and expulsion rates forEuropean and Asian students were more static.During 2011, total unjustified absences were relativelyinfrequent during primary school, but increased duringsecondary school, with the highest rates being in Year13+. While frequent truancy rates also increased duringthe secondary school years, the rate of increase was lessmarked than for total unjustified absences.During 2006, 2009 and 2011, total unjustified absencesand frequent truancy were higher for Māori and Pacificthan for European and Asian students. Total unjustifiedabsences were lower in 2011 than they were in 2006 forMāori, Pacific and Asian students, although rates forEuropean students were similar. Similarly frequenttruancy rates were lower in 2011 than in 2006 for Māoriand Pacific students, although rates for European andAsian students were similar during the two periods.During 2011, total unjustified absences and frequenttruancy decreased as the degree of deprivation of theschool catchment decreased, with the lowest rates beingseen in those in the least deprived (deciles 9–10) areas.Amongst the DHBs in the Midland Region during 2000–2011,there were no consistent trends in stand-down rates, althoughrates in the Waikato and Tairawhiti were generally higher thanthe New Zealand rate, while rates in Lakes DHB were lower.Rates in Taranaki were slightly higher than the New Zealandrate from 2005 onwards, while rates in the Bay of Plenty werelower from 2006 onwards. Suspension rates in the MidlandDHBs varied, with rates during the late 2000s being similar tothe New Zealand rate in the Bay of Plenty, Tairawhiti andTaranaki, but higher in Lakes DHB and the Waikato.There was large year to year variability in exclusion andexpulsion rates amongst the Midland DHBs during 2000–2011, making precise interpretation of trends difficult.In the Waikato during 2000–2011, suspension rates werehigher for Māori > Pacific > European > Asian students, whilein the Bay of Plenty, Lakes DHB, Tairawhiti and Taranakirates were higher for Māori than for European students.In the Waikato during 2011, the total unjustified absence ratewas 2.9 days per week per 100 students, as compared to 3.2days in the Bay of Plenty, 3.3 days in Lakes DHB, 4.2 days inTairawhiti, 2.4 days in Taranaki and 2.3 days for New Zealandas a whole. Similarly, the frequent truancy rate in the Waikatoin 2011 was 1.2 per 100 students, as compared to 1.1 in theBay of Plenty, 1.4 in Lakes DHB, 3.9 in Tairawhiti, 1.1 inTaranaki and 1.0 per 100 students for New Zealand as awhole.In the Waikato during 2011, total unjustified absences andfrequent truancy were higher for Māori and Pacific studentsthan for European and Asian students, while in the Bay ofPlenty, Lakes DHB, Tairawhiti and Taranaki, rates were higherfor Māori students than for European students.Introduction and Overview - 33